Worst cover versions ever!
 

OK, people. Let's see if we can figure out who has perpetrated the worst cover versions of all time. My modest proposals would be:

1. Wet Wet Wet "Love Is All Around" (original by The Troggs) - A horrific molesting of the previously inoffensive Troggs tune by the fake soul Scots, including one Marti "Cuntface" Pellow. Famous in the UK for spending about 4 months at number one, and for being in that damn "Four Weddings and a Dildo" film.

2. Sam Moore and Lou Reed "Soul Man" (original by Sam and Dave) - OK, so we have a film about a white douchbag who decides to black up just so he can get a college scholarship. So what song should soundtrack this racist tosh? Ah yes, a lame reading of "Soul Man", done by Sam Moore and that funky soul brother Lou Reed. Yes, Lou "mumble putdown" Reed. The video of said monstrosity features Reed laying down vocals in the studio, complete with mirror shades and mullet. "You ain't seen....nuthin' yit!" Barf!

3. The Soup Dragons "I'm Free" (orig. by Rolling Stones) - Where this previoulsy whiter-than-white group suddenly discover their reggae and dance heritage, and decide to baggy-up one of the Stone's lesser efforts. Hear - funky wah-wah guitar and Happy Mondays style drumming...wow! See - the lead singer making a complete cunt of himself on national TV! Gasp - as an 'indie' group sucks deep on the corporate cock to get a top 20 hit.

4. Mick Jagger and David Bowie "Dancing In The Streets (orig. by Martha and The Vandellas" - Destroying this song for charity should not excuse Dames Mick and Dave. Imagine a couple of pissed forty-somethings shouting this out at a local karaoke, and wearing hideous designer coats. That's all I remember of the video. Well that, and Mike Read saying how great it was on 'Going Live'. Jagger should have been killed for this, whilst Bowie should have been sent into exile to, let's say, Mongolia.

It's not their fault. The songs they were covering were shit in the first place.

all 4 of those covers suck serious assshit

That Neil Young song Dino Jr covered on the "The Bridge" compilation was pretty unlistenable...

If you ever heard Ronan Keating doing Fairytale of New York.... my lord. A beautiful piece of work turned into soup.

In fact any time someone on pop idol sings a song they ruin it but generally that programme doesnt have music i particularly care for.

Im also interested to hear Rod Stewart's version of Downtown Train by Tom Waits, if only so i can laugh and cry at the same time

The Troggs did something rather - hummm - peculiar with Good Vibrations. Reg Presley articulated every single syllable. I appreciate that band, but, not that one. And to think that they covered Satisfaction too...

"Blue Monday" by Orgy is fucking atrocious. Their rendition of it resembles some corny 80s power ballad.

i think Nico did a cover of The End by the Doors.

that one.

The Cerys Matthews & Tom Jones version of Baby, It's Cold Outside has to be heard to be believed.

Nirvana - Here She Comes Now
Beck and Emmylou Harris - Sin City
Marilyn Manson - Tainted Love
Kelly Osbourne And Ozzy - Changes
An appaling cover of an even more appaling song: Madonna - American Pie
Drop Nineteens - Angel
Fuzztones - Mr Soul
Billy Idol - Heroin
Duran Duran - White Lines
Stereophonics - I Wanna Be Your Dog
Dinosaur Jr - Quicksand
The Divine Comedy - Radioactivity
Ruby Isle - Teenage Riot
The Levellers - Plastic Factory
The Jesus And Mary Chain - Reverberation

what the fuck?? that's better than the original!!

You should listen to the live version in "June 1st, 1974" just with harmonium, not the version of the "The End" album arranged by Cale and Eno. She didn't like the arrangements either. But then again, only if you like Nico's voice and persona, which I think was awesome.

I totally agree...eek! :eek:

i agree with those covers mentioned in the first post, except soup dragons wasn't really that bad... love is all around was originally a great song but wet wet wet totally ruined it so that i can't even stand the original anymore.

Indeed. The whole of ' The End ' album has an irritating sound about it. I don't really like 'The End' as a song, but that version on harmonium is much better. Bowie's version of Quicksand is 300 times superior to the Dinosaur Jr's version. Loop's cover of 'Cinnamon Girl' is a bit rubbish too. Joy Division's cover of ' Sister Ray' is also crap.

If they had done a studio version I think it would have rocked, but you're right, the version on 'Still' is a bit pants.

I'm not sure where I stand on the cover versions v originals debate.

What constitutes a good or bad cover version?

sweet jesus, i didnt even know about that, thats makin me shiver just thinking about it.

David Kitt (irish politician's son and total wankbag with an accoustic guitar) does an accoustic version of Teenage Riot, i myself have never heard it but its cuz i really dont want to.

I've always thought the same, it's not so bad what they do with the riff, but the version on Still makes it sound like it lacks in bass guitar and therefore it affects the overall sound of it.

Ramones - Substitute
Ramones - Have You Ever Seen the Rain
Ramones - Surf City
Ramones - Seven And Seven Is
Ramones - ...actually ALL the tracks on Acid Eaters...

Placebo - Where Is My Mind?

They put out all what made that song beautiful, worst is that they replaced Kim choirs by some awful organic Molko voice, it's unlistenable. Blah

Stereophonics doing I wanna be your dog....
Id agree with the Marilyn Manson cover of tainted love too, it takes away all the sleaze and just makes it panto but in a bad way

Placebo - Twentieth Century Boy. Unspeakable cover of the T Rex choon by the nasally challenged Brian Molko and Co. When it comes to the history of Benelux rock, Molko is truly the missing link between Golden Earring and The Smurfs.

Megadeth - God Save The Queen. Dave "Ned Flanders" Mustaine is such a Pistols fan, he doesn't even need to bother to learn the correct lyrics - substituting "No more council tenancies" with "no more cunt-like tendencies". Thankfully, Megadeth's career started a non-stop descent from here.

Tom Jones - Kiss. Mr Woodward turns the fey Prince and The Revolution summery pop number into a sweaty, medallioned, Brut 33-wearing sweatathon, assisted by the Art Of Noise and their Fairlight. The Jones should stay in Vegas and never descend on a recording studio again.

anyone heard gene simmons do firestarter?

megadeth did anarchy, not god save the queen.

i agree too, although after the album that has anarchy, they recorded rust in peace which is amazing, then did a bunch of albums of questionable quality, after they broke up only to reform as dave and the imps.

i did laugh at that "ned flanders" stab, you're so repped!

britney spears doing satisfaction and i love rock n' roll, anyone?

(i mostly like brit but she can't do covers).

I bet she thought that Joan Jett wrote the original and not The Arrows.

check these and tell us if they're bad.
http://pressrandom.com/2006/07/12/covers/

ohh i remember one!

i recently saw some performace where willie nelson played with sheryl crow and both butchered johnny cash and june carter's "jackson" to death.

Seconding the Ronan Keating cover of Fairytale of New York... the cringe-tastic bit where he changes the 'you scumbag you maggot, you cheap lousy faggot' to something that does not scan at all.

Those of you with sensitive dispositions might light to hide their ears at this point.

I'm going to dig up my thread about good covers. That'll take the pain away.

A prick writes... the original wasn't sleazy in the slightest; the Soft Cell version was though.

Phil Collins' - Tomorrow Never Knows.

Phil gets a lot of stick here and I tend to be one of those who tries to defend him (at least a little bit.) But this is just too much. Hideous from start to finish. Evil even, if you feel like getting extreme about it. And when it comes to PC, that's never too difficult.

Guns n Roses - Sympathy for the Devil.

From the Interview with a Vampire soundtrack this horribly misguided effort manages to bleed any menace from the original and in so doing actually demonstrates just how far from greatness GnR always were. You actually believe Jagger when he sings of being a 'man of wealth and taste' but Axl? Wealth undoubtedly, but taste? Me thinks not.

I mean the Soft Cell version, seeing as its the most well known and definitive

Agreed. Total shit.

A friend of mine who's really into Placebo played this for me once cause he knew I liked the Pixies. I threw up all over him as an expression of my rage.

Regarding Placebo they butchered lots of great songs on the 2cd-edition of Sleeping with ghosts.

Running up that hill, Bigmouth strikes again, Ballade de Melody Nelson...

me too.
god i'd tried to block this out, iconic amongst bad covers. the worst perhaps?
why Lou ? why?

I'm still being a twat when I say that depends on how old you are. I can't imagine there's that many Northern Soul fans round here, but at some point somone's going to listen to dance music/ music to dance to round here.

Ah yes, the original by Gloria Jones (or the 2nd Mrs Marc Bolan, if you will) - a high-steppin', hand clappin' piece of 60's soul that in itself is good.

Have you ever heard Gloria Jones' alternate version of Tainted Love, with Marc Bolan (although I think he only plays on it, no singing)?

Gloria was a backing singer for T-Rex after her northern soul heyday, and she and Bolan had a child together (Rolan Bolan).

eletronic remix with a beat, of pink floyd song 'another brick in the wall (part 2)'